The Look of Love
by JennieBlue
Summary: Can a picture really capture the love between two people? Rated M for sexual references.


The Look of Love

A party is in full swing at my house as I head inside from the patio to get more shrimp for the grill skewers. It isn't often that Calleigh and I host parties at our house, but we…I mean all of us from the day shift…needed a fun diversion. The summer had been brutal. Not only had it been especially hot and humid, breaking temperature records on an almost daily basis, but there had also been a marked increase in homicides…very violent homicides. No doubt the heat was affecting some much worse than others. Labor Day seemed to be a good day for a backyard barbeque, complete with a refreshing dip in our pool. Besides, in the coming months, Calleigh and I would be far too busy and no doubt too tired to even _think_ about having a party.

I grabbed a container of shrimp from the refrigerator and head back toward the patio doors when I spotted Natalia standing in the living room, seemingly staring at nothing. Moving into the room I noticed she was staring at a picture of me and Calleigh taken just a couple months ago. Of all the pictures taken of the two of us, this one was my favorite. It wasn't a posed picture taken in a studio with the two of us sitting side by side, or her in front of me. This one was more natural looking, taken at the beach, with the two of us sitting in the sand amongst the marsh grasses, with the ocean behind us. We were wearing matching khaki pants and white button down shirts, save the matching beige tank top Calleigh wore under hers. In the picture I was sitting with my right leg outstretched, my right arm resting on my bent knee, my left leg was curled in front of me. My beautiful wife sat turned toward me in front of my outstretched leg, with her legs curled underneath her. Her long blonde hair flowed over her shoulder, moving with the slight breeze that blew, and the most beautiful smile graced her face.

Natalia didn't seem to notice that I'd stepped into the room. She stood looking at the picture with her head cocked to the side, as if studying something about it. I called out to her softly, not wanting to startle her, but she jumped visibly anyway.

"Eric!" she exclaimed, pressing her hand to hear heart, as if to slow down an increased heart rate. "I swear you like creeping up on people!"

"Sorry, Nat," I tell her. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"S'okay." She pointed toward the picture. "I saw this picture of you and Calleigh and it just…," she trails off, as if looking for the right words to say.

"Just…what?"

"Well," she starts again, "the picture itself is pretty standard for Miami. I mean, it was taken at the beach. But what really struck me about the picture is the look in your and Calleigh's eyes…the way you're looking at each other." She shook her head slightly. "I have never seen a picture of two people so obviously, deeply, in love with each other. You can see it in your eyes…it's written so clearly on your faces."

I smiled, knowing exactly what she was talking about. It was part of what made this one picture my favorite. The morning the picture was taken, Calleigh told me in a most provocative way that I was going to be a father. Our only commitment that day was the photo shoot just before lunch, so we had plenty of time to enjoy each other…and enjoy we did. The mere recollection of that morning made me smile. We'd started out the morning by making love slowly, taking our time with each other. After worshipping each other's body, Calleigh sat astride me, rolling her hips against mine as my hands roamed her exquisite body from her breasts to the place where we were intimately joined. Just as the need for completion was beginning to overwhelm us, she took my hands and placed them on her belly, and softly told me that she was pregnant. To say I was surprised and excited was putting it mildly. Our lovemaking at that point took on a more profound feeling of love and connection, and we climaxed almost simultaneously, while our lips were locked in an intense all-consuming heartfelt kiss.

So when the picture was taken there was nothing but pure unadulterated love for each other shining in our eyes.

I shook myself from the memory and turned to Natalia, and saw the wistful look on her face. I knew the look had nothing to do with our previous relationship years ago, we were long over that. So I prodded her. "Nat…what is it?"

She turned her head and looked momentarily out the patio doors. I followed her gaze to where Ryan stood at the grill, trying to impress Calleigh with his charcoal lighting skills. She sighed and continued, "You see, you and Calleigh have this amazing connection. I've seen the way you are with each other, and it's not just the way you look at each other," she said as she nodded toward the picture. "But it's also how you are with each other. I've seen you so upset you were ready to spit nails, and all it took was a touch from Calleigh to calm you. And last month when Calleigh came out of that meeting with Stetler, she was so agitated, scowling at anyone and everyone she came into contact with…that is until you walked up to her and put your arms around her…and it was like night and day the way she just seemed to calm down instantly."

I smiled at her words, she was absolutely correct. Calleigh certainly had a way of bringing a sense of calm to me, and likewise. It had always been that way between us.

"You two also seem to know what the other is thinking, without having to talk. God, you even finish each other's sentences when you _do_ talk. I can't count the number of times I've walked into the lab and found you both having a conversation about the evidence in a case without saying ten words!"

Again she looked toward the patio, that wistful look back on her face. And then it dawned on me what she was trying to say. "Is that why you haven't moved forward in a relationship with Wolfe?"

Natalia shrugged. "Yeah, kind of. I mean, he's fun and I like him…but…but I want a relationship like the one you and Calleigh have."

I think she realized the plaintive tone in her voice because she softened a little before continuing.

"I want someone that can calm _me_ simply with a touch. I want someone that will finish my sentences, someone I can communicate with, without actually talking, someone that will look at me…like you look at Calleigh," she ended with a whisper.

"Some day you will have someone that will do all that, Natalia," I tell her, conviction clearly evident in my tone. "I firmly believe that there is that one true love out there for everyone, sometimes you just have to wait." She had this look of shock on her face. "What?" I asked, chuckling.

"It's just that I never thought I'd hear something like that come from you."

"Natalia…why do you think I never made a commitment with any of the women I dated before Calleigh? I never felt that connection with anyone else. I knew right away I loved her, and she knew she loved me…it just took a while to convince her that we could make our relationship work both at home, and at work. One day, Natalia…you'll have that, even if…" I stopped and turned toward the patio doors, anticipating.

Moments later the patio doors opened and Calleigh came toward us. "There you are," she drawled in her soft southern accent. "I was getting hungry," she said, rubbing her softly rounded stomach.

Once again she took my breath away. She was beautiful to me on so many levels, but carrying my baby she was utterly breathtaking. I might need to keep an oxygen tank nearby as her pregnancy progresses. "You're always hungry," I tell her as I wrap my free arm around her and press a kiss to her lips.

"Can't help it," she smiled winningly and grabbed the shrimp container from my hands. "Besides, Valera's hungry too. She threatened to grill the shrimp herself…"

"If I don't get out there with this," I finish, gesturing with the container still in my hand.

"Yeah," she said, and with a wink turned to head for the patio. Her voice trailed behind her, "Or we could let Horatio's legendary culinary skills do the job for us."

I looked at Natalia, Natalia looked at me. "Oh no," I declared, "not H! His idea of cooking is pressing the buttons on a microwave oven."

"Oh God," Natalia said grabbing my arm and rushing me to the patio doors. "I refuse to eat microwaved shrimp!"


End file.
